


Captain America: The First Avengers

by WaywardFairchild



Series: Recreating a Universe [5]
Category: Agent Carter (TV), Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Awesome Peggy Carter, BAMF Peggy Carter, M/M, Minor Bucky Barnes/Steve Rogers, Pre-Serum Steve Rogers, Protective Bucky Barnes, Protective Steve Rogers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-07
Updated: 2020-10-07
Packaged: 2021-03-07 22:21:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,573
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26875102
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WaywardFairchild/pseuds/WaywardFairchild
Summary: Steve just wants to join his best friend in the war. Bucky just wants Steve safe. Peggy wants to end the war.-A CA:TFA rewrite because they deserve better-the fifth of many
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers
Series: Recreating a Universe [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1876648
Comments: 8
Kudos: 7





	Captain America: The First Avengers

Steve tried to enlist again. He just wanted to be out there with Bucky. He didn’t like knowing his best friend was out there alone. He didn’t know why it was hard to think about Bucky being out there alone, but he just wanted to be there for Bucky. When they denied him again, Steve was annoyed. He would get in someday but for now, all he could do was try and keep on trying. He needed to be there for Bucky. He needed to be there to protect Bucky, like a hero.

~

Bucky knew that Steve was frequently beaten up in alleys. He just had to find the alley that Steve would be in, which Bucky staked out various alleyways for Steve. He found him getting his ass kicked again. Bucky pulled the guy off Steve before checking up on him. Once he knew Steve would be alright, he started to listen to Steve. He was complaining about not getting enlisted, which made Bucky grateful that Steve wasn’t enlisted. He could not handle losing his friend to the war. He preferred that Steve stayed home, safe instead of trying to enlist using every chance he got but he knew Steve Rogers was determined. Something that Bucky admired about his Steve. He wished that he could take just Steve to the Expo but he had promised Rebecca that he would take this girl and her friend as their dates. Steve seemed as excited as Bucky. Not that Steve noticed how Bucky would look at him. 

~

The Stark Expo. It was something that was amazing to them. It wasn’t like normal inventions that they were used to. It was something new. Bucky had to flirt with both girls since Steve seemed to ignore them. He was kinda glad that he did but he wished that he would pay attention to at least what he was saying. Steve walked off after they saw the failed flying car. Before Steve could once again enter the enlistment area, Bucky stopped him.

“You are not going to try this again?” Bucky asked. He really wanted to beg him to stop trying and to stay home so that he was safe. 

“I have to,” Steve said. Bucky eventually let him go so he could try again. Steve walked away and Bucky watched, helplessly. Bucky just wished that Steve would focus on him so that he can stop worrying about Steve again. Steve filed out the paperwork before he was brought back. However, he soon thought he was found out for lying on official documents, so he went to leave before he got into trouble, but he was stopped by a doctor. He sat back down as the doctor told him that he knew who he was. Bucky was right. He should have just given up. The doctor, named Eskrine, didn’t arrest him. Instead, he gave him a chance. He loved that he was finally given the chance to be out there with Bucky. He was finally getting what he wanted, but he wasn’t told the whole story. He knew it was for a project and that this scientist thought he was the best fit by just meeting him but no other details were revealed to him.

~

Steve realized that he was the smallest soldier there, but that was never his worry. He just wanted to show all the doubters that they were wrong. Eskrine watched as Steve showed Colonel Philips that he was a good man. Eskrine watched how Steve did find other ways to overcome his physical limitations. Peggy, too, noticed this about Steve Rogers. She had thought he was brave for joining with so many difficulties but to see that he was doing this and still trying to protect others was heartwarming. Peggy liked him better than the others. He was also respectful to her and treated her like a command officer, and not something to stare at and look at like a prized trophy. 

“You aren’t like the others,” She told him on the ride back after he used his brain to retrieve the flag. 

“I guess not,” Steve said.

“Peggy Carter,” she introduced.

“Steve Rogers,” he replied. They continued the conversation, and he even told her about how he struggled to enlist because of his health. Peggy knew he was a great candidate and the more Eskrine and Peggy watched him the more sure they were. When he was chosen, Steve was surprised, but if this helped him to get to Bucky, then he would do anything. 

~

Steve went through with the serum experiment. He didn’t give up even when it hurt. All he could think about was how he would be there fighting alongside Bucky soon enough. Once everything was done, everyone came over to him. Peggy smiled at him and asked how he was. She had been worried about him. She had just made a friend, she didn’t want to lose him. While everyone was still gushingabout the success, a man shot Eskrine. Steve went after him but he killed himself when caught. Steve was able to get back the last remaining vial but they had no way of replicating the serum without tests. As Steve saw it, he had two options. Since they were shutting down Project Insight, he could either become a test subject, or he could take up the offer to be an American Icon. Steve made his decision. One that would allow him to help out with the war. 

~

Steve did plays, movies, and fan meetings, but he knew this was not what he wanted. When they decided to transfer him overseas, he figured that he would at least be closer to where he wanted to be, even if the other soldiers did not agree. 

~

Bucky had figured it out very quickly. Whoever they picked would not come back. So when they saw them reaching for one of his men, he stepped in the way silently volunteering himself. The men seemed confused but they dragged him anyway, to experiment on him. Bucky just hoped that someone would come before another man was picked. He would try to hold in there for his men but he didn’t know how long he could last. He just hoped that they would send help. He had seen how war was fought and sometimes people were left behind. He thought about Steve. His Steve who would get the news and try to enlist, if he wasn’t arrested for identity fraud or being beaten up in an alley. 

~

Steve did his little act and went off to rest once he was done. He drew, instead, sullen that he was here acting like a monkey, instead of fighting on the battlefield. Peggy found him and he shut the notebook. The two talked about the morale and stuff until Peggy brought up Bucky’s unit. Steve found Philips and asked about Bucky. When he got the news he knew what he had to do. Peggy volunteered to help. Steve thought about Bucky. His Bucky was in danger and he had to save him. He didn’t care how but Peggy volunteering to help was better than nothing. 

~

Peggy and Howard got Steve as close as possible. Steve jumped out and landed as he snuck into the base and freed the men. When he asked about Bucky, they told him that he had been taken to the back room. Steve hurried, knowing he had to save his Bucky. He couldn’t go all this way, just to give bad news to Rebecca. Steve found Bucky, who looked like a mess. Bucky thought he was dreaming when he saw Steve’s face. He looked worried and was looking at Bucky like he was hurt. He was sort of hurting from whatever the Zola guy had done to him, but he was better now. 

Bucky noticed pretty quickly that his Steve changed. He wasn’t that scrawny guy that he had left back in Brooklyn. Steve smiled at him like finding him was the best thing that could happen. He had his Bucky back and now he could feel better knowing that Bucky was safe. The two made their way out as Steve told Bucky everything. Something he was used to doing from when they were children. Steve and Bucky had almost made it out when they ran into Zola and Red Skull. When Red Skull revealed his face, Bucky was worried that Steve suffered a similar plight, but Steve was just as surprised as him. Once their enemies were gone, the two figured a way out. Bucky got through but he saw that Steve didn’t. 

“Please make it over,” Bucky said when Steve executed his plan. Once Steve was over, the two got out of there. Bucky pulled him into a hug when they were safe.

“Thank you for coming for me,” Bucky muttered.

“I’m with you-” Steve said.

“Til the end of the line,” Bucky finished. Steve grinned and Bucky wished he could see him smile for the rest of his life. Bucky almost admitted his feelings right then and there but the two saw the others. They joined them as they headed back to camp. Bucky still had so much to say to Steve, but the words were left unspoken. 

~

Peggy knew she was in trouble. She had done something reckless because of a silly crush and now her whole career was on the line. Well it wasn’t just because of a crush. She had expected that Steve was their best chance in accomplishing the mission, there was a sudden increase in the volume of chattering by the men at the camp. The two went out to see Steve leading the POWs back to the camp. Bucky was beside him and walked right next to him as the other men trailed behind him like he was their savior. Peggy criticised Steve for being late but the man had a valid excuse, showing her the broken transmitter. Bucky used that moment to have everyone cheer for Steve. Bucky knew that Steve hated the attention but he saw how annoyed Philips was and he just wanted to keep Steve out of trouble. Everyone cheered while Bucky watched the man he loved. The man he could never have as his own. 

~

Steve recruited some of the recently freed men to be part of his Howling Commandos team. The name was suggested by a fellow member. He smiled as they all talked among themselves before he went over to Bucky who had been watching him. Bucky had been watching to make sure none of the other men made passes at his Steve. Not that they would. Bucky smiled when Steve came back and asked him to join the team. He would be able to be beside his Love even if Steve didn’t like him back. When Peggy joined them, Steve suggested that she too joined the Howling Commandos. She declined, but offered to help the team if needed. Peggy and Steve talked but Bucky just watched. He didn’t like when Peggy flirted with Steve but once she was gone, he just joked about how Steve had the girls’ attention now. Steve muttered something about Peggy just being a friend but Bucky saw the light blush. His best friend had a crush on Peggy. He was losing his Steve, but maybe Steve being happy would make Bucky happy.

~

Steve went to meet with Howard like Peggy asked him to when the secretary kissed him. He didn’t expect the kiss, nor did he enjoy it. He just wasn’t interested in her. Steve got away when Peggy came in. He knew she was mad but he didn’t understand why. Howard couldn’t help him with that. The man seemed to have no idea about women. Howard himself thought Steve was cute and innocent. If he was a girl, Steve would be his exact type, so he could understand the ladies’ preoccupation. Steve chose a shield and showed it to Peggy only for her to shoot at it while he was holding it. Steve looked at the shield and then at Peggy, who seemed to smile before walking away. 

“Women are confusing,” Howard said. 

“Yeah they are,” Steve said. ButSteve thought everyone was confused. Bucky had been a little confusing recently since he got back and Steve was wondering if something happened to his Bucky. He wondered what it would have been like to kiss Bucky or Peggy. He shook away the thought. They were his friends. He didn’t want to ruin that.

~

Steve became a great leader as Bucky, Peggy and the howling commandos followed him into battle. Steve fought so Peggy could be there. She was an amazing fighter. She deserved to fight, in Steve’s opinion. Peggy had struggled just as much as he did. As a team, they took down the Hydra bases. Most of them were gone. 

“I was thinking we could use this tactic,” Peggy would tell Steve only for Bucky to mention another one. Steve smiled. His two friends got along well when they worked together. He still felt that Bucky was jealous of Peggy and Steve’s friendship. 

Peggy noticed how much Bucky loves Steve. He would do anything for the other man. Bucky noticed how much Steve cared about Peggy’s presence. He wondered if Steve would kiss her already or if he would have to continue to deal with Steve and Peggy pinning. Steve, Bucky, and Peggy planned for the attack and capture of Zola together. 

“We capture him and we find out everything we can on Hydra,” Steve said. His team nodded as they went over the plans again. 

~

Peggy, Steve, and Bucky looked out and observed the incoming train. They all prepared as some of the men made jokes. Steve, Peggy, and Bucky headed out first and got onto the train. They were leading the group when they got separated from the rest. The three faced the enemy. Steve got knocked down and Bucky grabbed his shield to protect Steve. He wouldn't let his Steve get hurt. He got knocked out but held on as Peggy reached out to grab him. She couldn’t lose a friend. Steve knocked out the guy and helped Peggy get Bucky back in. 

“You alright?” Steve asked. Peggy watched as Steve babied his friend before they moved on to get Zola. Steve had Bucky checked out and went to confront Zola about what he had said. Peggy stopped him.

“You like him,” Peggy said.

“Of course I do,” Steve said. “He is my best friend.”

“I meant in a romantic sense, Steve,” Peggy said. Bucky overheard their conversation as Steve tried to deny Peggy was not having any of it, telling him that he should stop messing around. Bucky smiled as Steve told her that he would bring it up to Bucky once they won the war. 

~

Steve entered first. That was the plan that the team had made. Steve wanted all the attention on him so they could easily take down the base using the element of surprise. Bucky made sure to join him quickly, not liking that Steve was the bait. He was by Steve’s side in minutes as the two rushed to capture Red Skull. They met up with Peggy and saw they had to get to the airplane. Philips pulled up, and Steve and Bucky got in the back. 

“We do this together, Punk,” Bucky said. Steve smiled as he muttered a “jerk” towards his friend. The two got onto the plane. Peggy watched Steve and Bucky go, not realizing that this would be the last time she saw them. She wouldn’t see Steve and Bucky until many years later, but this would be a memory that she would tell Anthony when he was old enough to hear about it. She watched as her two friends left. She should have joined them but she knew this was their fight, not hers. She just hoped they would both come back from it. 

~

Bucky and Steve got in and saw the bombers running to get to the bombs. Steve and Bucky attacked and fought them. Steve went into the air after one of the bombers and stopped them from deploying before getting back in so he could go after Red Skull. Bucky was worried when he saw Steve leave but he was relieved Steve was back. The two went on to find Red Skull. Steve led with his shield out as Bucky held his gun ready to shoot at anyone that appeared. They entered and saw the chair where Red Skull normally sat. Bucky went one way as Steve went the other. Red Skull attacked them and the two fought him. As they fought Red Skull, Bucky got a cut to his left arm. He ignored it as they continued to fight. Bucky and Steve had him. They knew they did. Red Skull, in a struggle to regain the upper hand, he grabbed the tesseract. He grinned as he figured he won. He even gloated, but Steve and Bucky watched as the tesseract destroyed him, or so they thought. Steve and Bucky hurried to the panels, trying to figure out a way to get the plane down so they could get back to Peggy. They needed to return. They promised their friend that they would return to her and not leave her alone. 

“We are going to have to land the plane down in the water,” Bucky told Peggy over the radio, finally realizing that they have run out of options. 

“There has to be another way,” Peggy argued, not wanting to lose her friends. 

“There isn’t another way,” Steve said. Steve and Bucky looked at each other as Steve got the plane to head for the water. Bucky turned Steve’s face his way. Before Steve knew it, Bucky kissed him. He didn’t realise that they had hit the water. Steve and Bucky watched the water move around the ship. Steve pulled Bucky up as they found a place to lay in each other’s arms, figuring that if they were going to die, they would die together. Bucky held Steve close. 

“We could have been like this all the while,” Bucky teased. Steve smiled as they fell asleep for a very long time. 

~

Modern day

The team on hand was surprised when they found the two men and detected heart beats. They had been frozen for years and they were still alive. 

“Is that Captain America?” One of the men asked as they looked at the two men. 

“I believe so,” another said. The group talked about how it was them who found the super soldier when Howard Stark had spent years. They also wondered who the other man was. One of the men recognized him as James Buchhann Barnes, one of the Howling Commandos. He had learned about him in history class. SHIELD was on the scene quickly as they inspected the two heroes. They moved them to a SHIELD facility as the doctors detected a heartbeat.

“What are we dealing with?” Fury asked Coulson.

“Sir, Captain Rogers seems to be more responsive than Sergeant Barnes,” Coulson said. “It will take a little longer for Barnes to awake. It seems like he had a different version of the serum Captain Rogers has in his system. We are moving him to a secret facility like you asked because of the infection in his arm.” 

“I want a full team ready for when he wakes up,” Fury said. “What about Captain Rogers?”

“We should see him awake in a few days. I suggest giving him the news slowly. He seemed close to Barnes so we should wait until Barnes is better to give him the news,” Coulson suggested. Fury seemed to agree as he watched the monitors. 

“Head back to your position for now. We will make sure that Captain Rogers is brought back slowly,” Fury said. Coulson nodded as he went to fanboy over Steve Rogers some more. Fury just watched the monitors in annoyance, wondering why this had to happen when he was leading SHIELD. Peggy would not like this, nor would her nephew.

~

Steve woke up in a hospital room, or what he thought was a hospital room. The game going on was one he had been to with Bucky. He knew that game. Now that he was thinking about it where was Bucky? Peggy would have made sure the two were in the same room. He knew Bucky was alive. He couldn’t lose his best friend who was now possible more. Steve touched his lips, thinking back to the kiss before they crashed. The crash. He remembered the plane. He remembered holding onto Bucky. Hydra must have found them. This must be a Hydra base. He looked at the nurse as she came in. Something was off about her. He ran out only to see a prop room. When he got outside, he ran until he found himself in time square. He knew he was in New York, but this wasn’t his New York. Fury showed up and Steve watched the man as he told him that he was in the future. He came back to the compound with Fury. 

“Where is Bucky?” Steve asked. 

“He died from the cold. Frostbite,” Fury said. Steve wanted to mourn his friend but the doctors didn’t give him a chance as they began to run tests. If only Peggy and Howard had found him sooner. 


End file.
